North Otago Times. FRIDAY, MARCH 5, 1915. NOTES AND COMMENTS.

North Otago Times, Volume CI, Issue 13235, 5 March 1915, Page 4

North Otago Times. FRIDAY, MARCH 5, 1915. NOTES AND COMMENTS.

The decision oi' the New Zealand 11 o* vcrninciit lo make £15,000 immediately available from the Consolidated Fund tor the relief of distress in Belgium, and to render further aid monthly., is hi accordance with the national sentiment of the Dominion. The duty of succouring Belgium is a sacred one, for Belgium has suffered vicariously on behalf of Now Zealand and other freedom-' loving lands, The noble devotion of Belgium and her proud disdain of appalling odds, her constancy and steady courage make the task of relieving her more a privilege than a duty, and New Zealand would be unworthy of her position in the alliance of free States lighting for the liberties of the world did she turn,a deaf.ear. Sword and lire have swept Belgium, but civilisation may hope to be spared the disgrace, of .famine following yi their wake. The' appeal of the Belgian Belief Commission makes it clear that the whole' population of Belgium, rich and poor alike, are dependent on the sympathy, of the outside world for their daily dole of bread.- The need is-so.great'that. it could only be met by action of «; national character, and there will, be general satisfaction'that the Govern.; incut has given a lead to private gcuer: osity. There is no Reason why a monthly Dominion grant should be in* terpreled as divesting cifens of thei£ individual responsibility towards thu Belgians, and if a substantial subhidj; were,offered upon all money subscribed to a national fund the people of the Dominion would give as readily as ever. 1 The response would be all ' the more! generous beeniiHe the Government, has

Vv, ,\_ • \ " now given New inland ut slandbig apart Jfrom, Australia in this 'mailer, and t'lip Belgians will interpret our offering as'king, the measure ai the The -further ,mojii)ijy grant by tho Government .should -toe in proportioiij.to, th?; need of Belgium and tho pity and admiration of, New Zealand. It is no occasion for stinting, and the people of the Dominion'look to tho Government for a worthy lead.

Only a 'very,prejudiced newspaper critic would attempt to mako party capital put of the,condition 'of the public finances after sey.eu months of war, or .suggest that Liberal-financiers would have done any better than the present occupants of" the Treasury benches, For years prior to the advent of the Upt'orqi' Party the Liberals piled up Hie public expenditure and the public debt despito a period of great prosperity, when they liad ample opportunity to economise had they wauled to. When the■ financial year closes on March 111 'next; eight months out of the twelve will have been affected by Hie war, and it is absurd lo expect that estimates of receipts and ' expenditure, mainly compiled beforolhe war broke out, will correspond at all closely with the actual results of the year's operations. It is unreasonable to expect any'thiii;; else than a (liniinlshed revenue ami. an increased expenditure. The Customs revenue must have 'suffered very 'materially, ami -the hole made in the receipts "will' not look any smaller oil account of (ho extraordinary expenditure entailed in the purchase of wheat abroad to prevent bread rising to famine prices.,' Instead of talking afiout an empty Treasury, which is sheer malicious nonsense calculated to injure the public credit, it would be more to the point if soine of the newspaper financiers, nosing so keenly for party capital, were to recognise the inevitableuess.of war taxation and endeavour to assist the Government with some useful suggestions regarding the best Way of imposing it.

The Commodities Commission in New South Wales.has ruled that soap is not a necessary, commodity. The decision may surprise, some people to whom a day without soap would be almost as bad as a day without food, but the decision isisound in .view of the definition of "necessary commodity" given by the Attorney-General in introducing his Bill. .Tlie term, he said, included any of (he following:—"(a) Coal, firewood, coke, or other fuel;, (b) gas for lighting, cooking, or industrial purposes; (c) any article of food or drink for limn or for any domesticated animal (d) any article which enters into or is used in the composition or preparation of any of the foregoing. . . . Wc-in-

elude all those things which are obviously essential for the sustenance of life, either directly or indirectly.' 1 Millions of people manage to exist without soap. Kveu in civilised countries there ..are many people whose acquaintance with soap is as distant as that of the. unwashed gentleman in a certain fuipous advertisement. We have even been told that soap is positively harmful, and that wc would enjoy better health if wc did not wash. The Commission has power to recommend Parliament to declare any article a necessary .commodity, but, unless the circumstances arc very special it would be guided by. the above definition.